Last Day of My Life
by E. Limberg
Summary: Songfic. Mac asks Stella to accompany him to a work dinner party since he doesn't have a girlfriend. The morning before the party, Stella gets held hostage in a jewelry store. Will Mac get there in time to save Stella before the man shoots her? MS later.
1. Asking Out

**Last Day of my Life**

**Chapter 1: Asking Out**

"_I just left Bobby's house_

_The service was today_

_Got me thinkin' about how fragile life is_

_As I drove away_

_You know Amy was his only love_

_In a moment she was gone, long gone_

_It could have been me or you_

_Oh, baby, there's no time to lose"_

"Stel, can I talk to you a second?" Mac asks as she runs right into him when turning the corner.

She blushes and closes the file she had been reading. "Sorry, Mac. I should've been paying attention to where I was going."

"No harm done," he leads her to his office and, as always, opens the door for her. "Look, I know it's kind of short notice, but I have this dinner party thing Saturday night. The chief personally came to deliver my invitation and told me my presence is mandatory. Also, he said I should probably bring a date. I don't know who else to ask; I've only been with three women since… well, you know. None of them felt right. Since I don't have… a girlfriend, I figure a best friend would work. Can you come with me?"

She smiles at his rambling. "I -"

"It's okay if you have plans or don't feel comfortable with the idea. I know it's hard for you to trust after Frankie, and you always say you trust me but… if you don't -" he continues until he fells her hand on his shoulder.

"I'll go with you, Mac, as long as you shut up."

"Thank you, Stel."

"Why aren't you taking Peyton? Danny told me about you two."

"We broke up a few weeks ago; it just wasn't working out right," he avoids looking at her, wondering what she must think of him since this conversation was turning to things he didn't tell her.

"I'm sorry," Stella places a hand on his cheek. Then, realizing what she had done, she quickly removes it.

"Maybe people are only supposed to find true love once in a lifetime."

"You know that's not true."

"I'm beginning to believe that it is."

"Mac, _I'm_ beginning to wonder how we became friends; we're so different. Should I be afraid to admit my first and only best friend is a man who's ten years older than me?" she teases.

"There's nothing wrong with that," he watches her, not seeing the point.

"There's nothing wrong with the two of us being friends, no. But you being my first and only best friend, yes, something's definitely wrong there."

"Stella, there's nothing wrong with being antisocial. You've obviously grown out of it."

She doesn't find that funny. "Better watch it, Mac, or you might have to find yourself a new date."

Danny, who was looking for Stella, walks in. "You two are going on a date? Remind me to collect my money from Don later."

"It's not a date," Mac defends them. "The chief told me I should bring a date with me to this dinner party. I don't exactly have a girlfriend so I thought Stella wouldn't mind going with me."

"Sure, it's not a date if you say so," he winks.

"What did you want, Danny?" Stella asks.

"Adam said he gave you the results."

"Here, now please go," she practically throws the folder at him.

Still smiling, Danny leaves the pair alone. "Have fun on your date."

Mac turns back to her. "I'll pick you up at seven on Saturday. Here," he hands a couple hundred dollars from his wallet to her. "I know you women hate to wear the same dress twice. Go get yourself a dress and whatever else you need."

"I can't accept this. You don't have to pay for me," she tries to give the money back to him.

"Don't worry about it. I can live with two hundred dollars less in my bank account."

"If you're sure?" He nods. "Thanks, Mac. I've got to go keep an eye on Danny and see how this information has helped us." Before leaving, Stella gives him a quick hug.

**A/N: I don't know when this will be updated. I've only got the next chapter typed and there's five more after that. It's been so long since I posted. I decided to take a break since I spent two weeks posting everyday to get three stories up before the May 2 episode, and they really needed to be finished the week before when we found out about her HIV test. I'll start with last week's episode: it defintely wasn't what I thought it would be. Also, it seemed kind of far fetched. They should've waited to do Stella's story until after the whole trial thing with Mac because right now the whole show is completely focused on that. And wouldn't Stella's blood be in CODIS anyway? I figured since they take their prints when they become officers, they would take DNA now too. What else has happened since then... everyone in bio thought the dissection test was really hard, but I thought it was kind of easy, after I fingured halfway through the test that the first questions I had were about the brain and not the heart. We have dress rehearsal for dance tonight, and my mom is making me go to karate before that in my makeup. The hair I don't mind because I always wore my hair to school in a bun before pictures or rehearsal. Tomorrow my friend and I are going to this CSI thing at the library; I think it has something to do with the CSI Effect and how that's effected juries. Then Wednesday we have our band banquet thing so I'll miss Providence and Bones. I might have to wait until Thursday to watch NY. It doesn't look all that interesting anyway. Oh, on the finale, Danny and Adam are held hostage in some warehouse by druggies while Mac, Stella, and Hawkes are held hostage in the lab by more druggies. Someone gets shot; I'm hoping for Peyton and that she'll die so Mac can be with Stella. Or maybe if either Stella or Mac is shot, they'll realize they love each other. I gotta go get dressed. Please review.**


	2. Taking Hostages

**Chapter 2: Taking Hostages**

"_So I'm gonna bring home a dozen roses_

_Pour us a glass of wine_

_And I'm gonna put on a little music_

_And turn down the lights_

_And I'm gonna wrap my arms around you_

_And rock you all through the night_

_And I'm gonna love you_

_Like it's the last day of my life"_

Knowing she really shouldn't, Stella enters the small jewelry store Saturday morning. She had picked out her dress the night before, Lindsay there to help her decide, but it had been too late to get accessories. This morning, she had gone to get shoes and other little things she needed. As she walked by the jewelry store, she couldn't fight off the temptation of going in just to look.

Inside there were five other women shopping and three clerks behind the counter. She walks around the store, looking through the glass containers at the diamond necklaces. As much as she still hates Frankie, she does admit to missing the new necklaces or bracelets at holidays or on her birthday or after a fight. The door opens again but she pays no attention to the new costumer.

"Can I see the manager?" the man asks.

"Let me get him for you," one clerk heads to a back room.

"What can I do for you?"

"Give me the key to the door," the man says, pulling out a gun.

The manager pulls his keys from his pocket, fumbling to find the right one. After he hands over his keys, the man with the gun locks the door.

"All of you get in the back," he points the gun around the room at them.

Stella gets behind the counter before making her way to the door. A hand on hers stops her, and she looks down to find one of the store workers sitting on the ground behind the counter. Before ducking down beside her, Stella makes sure the man doesn't see her. She sits silently beside this woman until they hear the door shut.

Barely audible, the woman whispers, "This can't be happening. I can't let him hurt my baby."

Stella looks down at the woman and sees it. She pulls her phone out and dials Mac's number. "Damn it, Mac. You're a cop; your phone is supposed to be on at _all_ times," she leaves a voice mail.

"Are you a cop too?" Stella nods. "I don't understand how anyone can look at dead bodies all day."

"You get used to it. I'm Stella. So how far along are you?"

"Eight months. I'm Lauren."

She opens her phone back up and calls 911. "There's an armed man holding about ten people hostage at the jewelry store on Broadway -"

A hand covers Stella's phone, pulling it away from her. "I'll be taking this," the man points his gun at Stella's temple. "I suggest you both get into the back room now, or I'll blow your brains to pieces."

Both women stand and head to the room with the others. The man follows them, closing the door behind him as the take a seat on the floor with the others. "One of you knows who I am. Until that person comes forward, I shall kill you one by one. Would anyone like to come forward?"

Stella racks her brain, trying to come up with a connection. This guy seemed to want revenge for something, and of all the people in the room, this made it more likely to be her. No matter how hard she tries, she just can't remember him.

No one had stepped forward. He raises the gun and fires, the bullet going through the manager's stomach. "I'll give you some more time to contemplate it, see if anyone remembers me then. I'll give you a clue: it wasn't him." The man opens the door and exits, leaving it open so he could hear what they were doing as he searches for valuable jewelry.

Stella crawls from her seat over the man, now lying on the floor, and covers his wound with her hands. This slows the bleeding a little, but the pool of blood around him still grows. Everyone else just watches her, amazed that she dared to move. His body becomes motionless, and she checks for a pulse. Sadly, she shakes her head and returns to her seat on the ground next to Lauren.

**A/N: I can't remember when I posted the first chapter. I think it was Monday. Thanks for the reviews. Now on to everything that's happened since then... I got one hundred and five out of one hundred on my dissection test. No one else has ever gotten all the answers right my teacher said. NY Wednesday wasn't too exciting. Can't wait till next week though. I was hoping it would be Peyton that gets shot and dies so Mac and Stella can be together. Or that Mac or Stella gets shot so they realize that they love each other. I had my dance recital today. Everyone loved my pirate dance. No one even mentioned my lyrical dance. Personally, I like lyrical better even though it's harder technique wise. Jazz I can't breathe during and it's way too fast. I don't think anybody likes the slow stuff anymore because the owner has kind of gotten rid of lyrical unless it's a solo or duet; very few people do lyrical solos. There's not so much ballet either, at least in the older girls; she can't get rid of that though because ballet is like the base for all other types of dance. Next year I will get to do one of my country songs for lyrical because my teacher found two songs she likes. I'll do one next year, I'm leaning towards the Rascal Flatts one, along with Phantom, and the Martina one the year after. What else can I say... sorry I haven't updated. My brother has three soccer games this week so I should be able to do some more typing. I can't post anymore until then because I have nothing else typed. I've got the rest of this to type, a whole other story that I don't even remember what it's about, and a one chapter thing that's almost done. I still have seven more ideas written down. Please review some more.**


	3. Questioning Skills

**Chapter 3: Questioning Skills**

"_I drive off when the sun comes up_

_I get back when it's gone down_

_There's so much I wanna do to you_

_But I can't be around_

_Whoa, time has been just like a thief_

_It's stolen too much from us_

_So once it's gone, we can't make it up_

_So tonight let's get back in touch"_

"Morning, Don. Why didn't you call my cell?" Mac answers his home phone.

"It's not on or something. Anyway, there's a hostage situation on Broadway in some jewelry store. We need you here. And call Stella, will you? She's not answering any of her phones either," Flack tells him.

"I thought we only dealt with murders."

"I'm just doing what I was told to. See you in twenty minutes, the boss says, or he's firing both you and Bonasera. Mac, I'd much rather keep you as my boss than have Danny in charge so get here soon."

Mac picks up his cell phone, ignoring the message that informs him of a voice mail, and speed dials his partner. Stella doesn't answer. Leaving his apartment, he searches his address book for her home phone number. He gets the answering machine. "Stella… I guess you're not home."

Again, he calls her cell and leaves a message for her this time. As he starts his car and leaves the parking lot, he punches his pin in to listen to the voice mail. He hears Stella's voice, and she sounds panicked. "Mac, you know your phone is supposed to be on at all times. This is an emergency. I'm in that small jewelry store on Broadway, and some guy with a gun just walked in. One of the workers and I managed to hide behind the counter as he took the other eight people into the back. I'm kind of helpless here without my gun. I hope you get this in time."

"Oh, no," he whispers, dropping is phone. "Not Stella." She was one of the hostages in the store. Starting to worry about her himself, he drives more frantically, willing himself not to think about what could happen to her.

**Last Day**

"Curly, can you tell me who Flack and Mac are?" the man comes back into the room.

Stella looks around, wondering who he's talking to, until she notices everyone else staring at her. "They're coworkers and friends."

"What's your job?"

"I'm a detective."

"You've got four calls from them saying you need to get to this crime scene. I haven't heard sirens yet. Where is the NYPD?" he points the gun at her. "Call him and tell him that if one officer comes in here, you're all dead." He tosses the phone to her, "And she'll be the first to go." The gun is pointed at Lauren.

"I'm fine, Mac. Listen, when you get here, you can't send someone inside, or he'll kill us all. He's already killed one man, and I don't doubt he'll do it again," she tells him before the phone is taken away.

"Would anyone like to come forward now to save the others?" he asks again. All the women on the floor continue to shake in fear, trying not to catch his attention. No one steps forward so he aims and fires.

At first, Stella thinks he is shooting at her, but when she fells no pain, she realizes it was the woman behind her. Again, she moves towards the victim, hoping to help her. The woman had been shot in the head, and there was no way Stella could help her.

"Why aren't you trying to help her?" a woman on the far side of the room asks.

"She's been shot in the head; there's no way for me to help her. I'm not a doctor of any kind."

"Aren't detectives supposed to know first aid?" someone else asks.

"Simple first aid. In the unit I work for, we solve crimes, figure out who killed the person and why. By the time I'm at a scene, the victim is dead and has been for at least a couple hours."

"Is that why your unit was called to the scene? We're all going to die."

"I don't know. Any officer could arrest this guy as long as they got here before he left and found he had the same caliber weapon as the bullets in these two bodies," Stella answers.

"Don't you know any self defense? Can't you take him down?"

**A/N: I can't wait until tomorrow. I really hope it's as good as the previews make it look. Anyway... oh, I don't think I said this before but the song is "Last Day of My Life" by Phil Vasar. I've got the rest of this story typed; it still needs edited but that won't take long. My dumb dog is under the computer desk, shaking because she's afraid of the wind or something. Nothing much has happened. I'm not sure if I said this either but I found a picture of Stella and Hawkes really close together, too close together in my opinion, from the finally. They can't be dating. I wouldn't mind it, he's okay, but I really want her and Mac to go out. With Peyton though, that won't happen. I was hoping she would be the one to get shot, but I think it's Danny. I have to go type more for you guys; I've gotten the one chapter thing done, and that'll be next. Please review.**


	4. Giving Birth

**Chapter 4: Giving Birth**

"_I'm gonna bring home a dozen roses_

_And pour us a glass of wine_

_And I'm gonna put on a little music_

_And turn down the lights_

_And I'm gonna wrap my arms around you_

_And rock you all through the night_

_And I'm gonna love you_

_Like it's the last day of my…"_

Stella sits with her hands over her eyes, thinking of a way to save all of these women as they continue to pester her for not taking action.

"Do you think the police are here yet?" one woman who had remained quiet until now asks.

"They're here," Stella assures.

"And it's _your_ fault we haven't been saved yet. Why did you tell them not to come in?"

"Did you want to die because help came?"

"We're all going to die anyway unless someone knows what he wants."

"I bet _she_ knows him; he's probably one of those psychos she locked up that escaped," the woman in front of her points to her.

"Oh, no," Lauren clutches her stomach, and all eyes turn to her.

"Does anyone know how to deliver a baby?" Stella asks.

"You mean they didn't train you to do that?" someone across the room says sarcastically.

"Who has had a baby before?" A few women raise their hands timidly. "I know you're all mad at me, but you have to help her. Do it for her and the baby. Just because some lunatic decided to hold us hostage doesn't mean an innocent baby has to die."

Three women go to help Lauren while Stella looks around for what she needs. Unfortunately, she can not find towels in the room. She takes her suit jacket off and pulls her sweater over her head to use for drying the baby off. After putting her jacket on over her undershirt, she searches for something to wrap the baby in. "I need your jacket." The woman sighs before handing it to her.

"We need something to cut the umbilical cord," a woman calls to her, holding the baby.

Stella gives her sweater to her as she looks around again. A pair of scissors lies on the counter, and she gets them. When the baby boy is cleaned off, they hand him to Stella to wrap in the jacket while they clean Lauren up.

"He's beautiful," Stella holds the boy out for Lauren to take, not noticing the others were back at their seats.

As Lauren reaches out to take her son, a bullet pierces her stomach. Again, she clutches her stomach. Stella pulls the baby close to her, watching helplessly as blood leaves her friend's body. "I… I want you to keep him, Stella. Take care of him… for me."

"I can't do that. Tell me his father's name, and I'll make sure he gets him."

"He… died in Iraq… two months ago. Take care of my baby for… me, please," she closes her eyes.

"I will."

**Last Day**

The team stands away from the swat shooters, discussing a plan to get inside without the hostages being killed. Mac tunes out their voices, watching the building anxiously. It was hard for him to just stand there helplessly while Stella could be in there dying.

"There's no way for us to save these woman without going in. I say we take our chances; he can't possibly shoot them all before we get him. What do you think, Mac?" Flack turns to his boss.

"I just want her to come out safely," he feels tears sting his eyes. With the thought of losing her, Mac has realized that he loves his best friend. He vows to tell her at the dinner tonight that he is determined they will get to together.

The chief comes over to ask for their plans. Soon after, they are putting on bullet proof vests and pulling out their weapons.

From the building comes a second shot since they arrive. Unable to take the suspense, Mac runs to the door, leaving everyone else behind. "Get back here, Taylor," he faintly hears the chief yell as he breaks the door down.

**A/N: Last night's episode was awesome. There was only one thing I didn't like... Mac and Peyton are still together. And he's going to London with her. Stella is so much better for him; he just doesn't realize it yet. So when the guy heard them typing on the computer, how come he couldn't hear them running away? Stella had heels on and if you listen closely, you can hear their footsteps when they show that scene. And why didn't they just shoot all the men after they got a gun when they encountered them? They were defending their lab, and if they didn't kill them, they could have gotten killed themselves. Now I can't wait until next season. I think my dog wants in. Oh well, my brother can let her in. We, my English class, convinced the teacher not to give us our weekly stem quiz tomorrow because it's her birthday, and we're going to have a party for her. She said we only get out of the test if everyone, or almost everyone, brings stuff in. I made cookies and brownies. One of them is for study hall though because Mr. Fat Bald Study Hall Guy as I call him wants to have a cookie party tomorrow for some reason. He doesn't look like he needs anymore cookies; really, he's like more than five times the size of Stella and maybe even Mac. Then I miss trig because of the awards thing. I got nominated by one of my teachers for the Pride in Academics thing. Wonder which one... probably bio or Spanish. Could be Western Civ teacher too. Okay, I'll update this sometime this weekend. I've got my one story about Stella's wardrobe typed and editted. It's not what I thought it would be when I first started writing it. Send me some reviews if you want me to post that soon. Thanks.**


	5. Promising Care

**Chapter 5: Promising Care**

"_Life is a rainbow, it's a spring snow_

_It's the morning dew_

_And I don't wanna waste another minute_

_Without you"_

Mac rushes in, the rest of the team running to catch up, and heads to a closed door behind the counter. From inside the room, another shot is fired, making him move faster so all the hostages are not killed, especially Stella.

He kicks the door down and fires at the first person he sees. Luckily it is the man pointing his gun at the other women. Three bullets bring the man to the ground, and before looking for Stella, Mac kicks his gun away from him.

At this time, the other four catch up to him. Danny and Lindsay usher the women out of the building while Flack and Hawkes check for pulses in the five people lying on the ground.

Mac looks at the faces of the women leaving, searching frantically for Stella; she is not there. When the room is cleared, he finds her lying on the ground with Hawkes next to her, covering her shoulder with his hands. He rushes over to them.

"Somebody get the paramedics in here. I may be a doctor but I can't save her without equipment," Sheldon yells.

"What happened?"

"She took a bullet to the shoulder. Should be fine if the medics get in here now. Take the baby."

"What baby?" he looks at the jacket in her arms and is surprised to see a face looking up at him. When he tries to take the baby from her, she tightens her grip.

"Stella, let Mac have the baby. Can you tell me who his mother is?"

"Dead," she whispers as Mac takes the baby from her. "I promised to… take care of him… for her."

"I'll take care of him for now. Was he born in here?" Mac takes her hand and squeezes it. She nods weakly. "We'll get him to the hospital too."

The paramedics finally come in and take over. Mac climbs in the back with the baby before they take her to the hospital.

**Last Day**

Mac sits at Stella's bedside, waiting for her to awaken. While they had her in surgery to remove the bullet and make sure nothing was damaged that wouldn't repair itself, he had taken the baby boy to the nursery to be cared for. They needed information that he didn't know and Stella probably didn't either in order to care for him. Once he explained what they knew so far, they took him in.

He is falling asleep in the chair when she finally wakes up. "Mac?"

"How are you feeling, Stel?" he leans forward in the chair to take her hand.

"Where's the baby? I told her I'd take care of him," she looks around the room and tries to sit up.

Mac places a hand on her good shoulder and gently pushes her back down. "He's fine. I took him to the nursery so they could make sure he's healthy. When the doctor comes in, we'll ask if you can go see him."

"What will happen to him then?"

"We've talked to all the other women and their stories fit together. To get to what you need to know, they all said she told you to take care of the baby as she was dying. I'm guessing you'll get to keep him, but there's no way you can right now."

"I'm fine. I promised her I'd care for him and that's what I'm going to do," Stella says, determined. "Go get the doctor; I want out of here."

"I can't do that. He said they'll release you in a few hours if everything looks okay. Hawkes will take you home. The baby they'll probably keep for a couple days, but you'll have to talk to them."

"Why aren't you taking me home?"

"Chief is still making me go to the dinner because I wasn't injured. Don't worry about missing it. They're always boring, or were when Claire and I would go."

"I can still go with you, Mac. You go home and get ready, then come pick me up and take me home to shower and get ready."

**A/N: I didn't kill Stella this time. She's fine, for the most part. I was going to update yesterday but the stupid thing kept saying the server wasn't working everytime I tried to get on the website. Friday I was actually awake all of Numb3rs; that's a first since like January. Bones I wasn't really paying attetion to because I was on iTunes trying to figure out what parts of the songs from Phantom of the Opera I want mixed together for my dance song next year. I'm still not sure other than Masquerade and Phantom of the Opera. I like Angel of Music too, but that's the one I don't know where to cut. I'm having problems with Phantom too. I could just make it easy and do the Overture, but that's just Phantom of the Opera, not a mixture of the songs. We got our schedules for next school year, sort of. They're making sure no one has problems with their classes. The time we have the class is on there, but there aren't teacher names yet. I eat lunch at noon next year; now I eat at ten, and I'm practically starving when I get to lunch this year. Normally at home I eat at one, but I eat breakfast. During the school year I can't eat breakfast because it makes me feel sick to eat at six in the morning. My best friend and I don't have any class together, although there's only three we could have together because she's in the lower classes because she's not quite as smart as me, no offense to her. My other friend and I have pre-calc and English together. And we figured out that Junior year should be the only one we have to take finals. How unfair: I have AP Calc, AP Government, British Literature, and some science, which I have yet to decide, to take finals in. Well, I'll post Wednesday I guess. Please review some more.**


	6. Dancing Together

**Chapter 6: Dancing Together**

"_I'm gonna bring home a down roses_

_And pour us a glass of wine_

_And I'm gonna put on a little music_

_And turn down the lights_

_And I'm gonna wrap my arms around you_

_And rock you all through the night_

_And I'm gonna love you_

_Like it's the last day of my life"_

"Stella, I wasn't expecting to see you here after what happened today. I told Mac you didn't have to come," the chief tries to smile pleasantly at her.

"Yes, but you told Mac he still had to come even though I was in the hospital," she looks up at her date. "Plus I wanted to see him in a tux."

They make their way to the table they were assigned to and sit down until the food is brought out a few minutes later. Mac, being a gentleman, helps Stella get her food and bring it back to the table. As he starts to eat, she just sits there, staring at her plate. "What's wrong?" he asks, touching her arm in the sling.

"I don't know if I can eat left handed."

The others at the table chuckle. While eating, they discuss work and the hostage situation today. As people finish eating, a band starts playing music for them to dance to.

Mac stands and offers his hand after she finishes. "Would you like to dance?"

She accepts, and he guides her onto the floor with a hand on her back. A slow song starts, and they stand there, trying to figure out where to place their hands. Finally, he takes her left hand in his right and puts his other hand on her waist, trying to avoid touching her shoulder.

"I was afraid I was going to lose you today after I found out that you were in there. When I heard your voice on the phone, I was relieved that you were still alive. We were getting ready to enter when we heard the second gunshot, which was really the third, but I had to go in. I couldn't wait for everyone else. You mean so much to me, Stella. Without you… I'd have nothing to live for," he lets go of her hand to hug her tightly to him, forgetting she is injured.

"Ow, not so tight, Mac," Stella puts her good hand on his chest to push him away a little.

"Sorry. Even in the sling you still look beautiful, Stel. I love you and nothing can change that," Mac cups her cheek with one hand and kisses the other. "I know you're going to keep that baby even though you don't have to because you keep your promises and won't let him grow up in the system. You can't raise a baby by yourself, especially with your arm right now. Let me help you raise him."

"So you doubt my abilities?"

"No."

"How's this going to work if we don't live together?"

"Why would we live together if you don't love me?"

"I never said I didn't love you," Stella rests her hand on his shoulder.

"You do love me?"

"Mac, how could I not?"

"Will you move in with me then so we can raise the baby together?"

"No."

"In a few months, will you?"

"Not until I've got a ring on my finger."

"I can do that," he pulls out a box from his pocket. "Will you marry me, Stella?"

"Not now."

"I didn't mean now. We can wait a year or two or however long you need. Stella, I want to help you. We can make this work."

"I know we can. So you just happened to have an engagement ring in your pocket?" she smirks.

"I got it before I picked you up. I knew you would react the way you did. I still need an answer though."

"Yes," she watches as he puts the ring on her finger. Before they resume dancing, she gives him a kiss.

"Let's go shopping for the baby tomorrow."

"I was planning on it, Mac. I don't have anything for him."

"He still needs a name. I like Mac Jr.," Mac suggests, trying to hide his grin.

"Definitely not. I can only handle one Mac," Stella frowns. "How about Nicholas Ryan Taylor?"

**A/N: No Mac Jr. One more chapter to go; I'll post it Friday or Saturday. I have to type fast so I can get out of this hot room. It's only May and I already can't stand the heat. I really think I will end up living in Alaska. So in bio today, my teacher gave us this assignment, and it's kind of like Clue. We have to go around asking ten or so teachers what they know about the death of my bio teacher (he's not really dead); they give us clues to where this murder happend and what he was killed with along with who killed him. I think it's due Tuesday but the first person to turn theirs in and it's right gets twenty bonus points. I'll have over a hundred percent then. It sounds really cool since I'm into the CSI stuff and Clue, but nobody knows like any of the teachers; I've heard of them, but I don't know where their rooms are. My math teacher is one and the other I can talk to during study hall. My friend told me I should put Colonel Mustard with the candle stick in the dining room and see what grade I get. Now he'd probably be disappointed if I turned that in because he now knows that I'm into the CSI stuff since my mom emailed him and asked whether he knew of any summer classes/camps that have to do with forensics. Not that he couldn't tell I liked CSI before with my shirt and books. It's too hot; I feel really sorry for Mac and Horatio (feeling sorry for Horatio? never in a million years) because they wear suits to work when it's like a hundred degrees out. I'm in shorts and a t-shirt and it's too hot for me. The one thing in Alaska though is that my doesn't think I'll find forensic work to do where it's snowy all year unless I investigate polar bear deaths or something. I've got two hours before NY to shower and maybe write a little more. Pirates comes out at eight tomorrow; my mom thinks we're going to be able to get in and go see it. I highly doubt it because everyone at school is talking about going then. I'd rather wait until Friday, beause then I won't have homework to do for the next day. Anyway... continue reviewing.**


	7. Adopting Nicholas

**Chapter 7: Adopting Nicholas**

"_And I'm gonna love you_

_Like it's the last day of my life_

_Oh…"_

"Could both of you sing here please?" the child service worker hands them a clipboard. Mac signs the paper first before giving it to Stella, who has a little difficulty writing her name with her arm in the sling and the baby, Nicholas, in her other arm. He takes it back and hands it to the woman. "And you also need to fill these out."

Mac fills out his information and all he knows of Stella's before asking her. "Why didn't you tell me you had to fill out so much paperwork before we could keep the baby, Stella?"

"I was never adopted, Mac, just put in foster care repeatedly where the parents already had their papers filled out before getting the kids."

"Really? Well, I'm sure your foster parents took good care of you. Now I'll need to make copies of both your drivers' licenses." Stella keeps her mouth shut about her experience in the system. Mac gives his to her before taking Nick so she could get hers out. As she leaves the office, the couple watches Nick grab at Mac's tie.

"See, he doesn't like them either. You really shouldn't wear them," she smirks, still fighting over the tie with him. "You're lucky I only have one hand."

"A month and a half to antagonize you with them."

The woman returns and hands them their cards. "You're all set. Here's my number if you need anything. Thank you for adopting one of the many… orphans we have."

"Thanks you," Mac shakes her hand and lets Stella do so before handing Nicholas back to her.

"What'd you give him to me for? I can't put him in the car seat," she says when they leave the office. Nick reaches up to grab a strand of her curls.

"Guess you'll be putting your hair back," he laughs.

"Mac, I can barely even wash my hair now."

"Come on; he's probably getting hungry since it took so long in there," Mac puts his hand on her back as they walk to the car.

**Last Day**

Stella lies fast asleep in Mac's arms when the baby starts crying. In order to get up, she has to pry his strong arms from around her stomach.

"Where are you going?" he says sleepily. She smiles at his over protectiveness.

"Nick's awake. Why don't you go get your guitar and sing for him?"

"You don't want to hear me sing, especially at this hour," Mac gets out of bed and follows her down the hall.

"What should we try first? There's music, the dryer, or we could put him in our room."

"Maybe he's just hungry," he picks up the baby and hands him to her.

"You go back to bed with him, and I'll go heat up a bottle of formula."

"I can get it. Besides, you have to go to work and can't be sleeping on the job," she heads to the kitchen instead of back to his bedroom.

"Stel, you can't hold him and heat up the formula with a sling on one arm. I took two weeks off to help you with him."

"What about the team? There are only four of them."

"You need me more than they do. If the Miami team can get by with four CSIs, a detective, and that Horatio who does nothing but watch over the lab, which still gets in trouble with the feds anyway, we can get by with three CSIs, two detectives, and Adam helping out in the field more than usual," Mac kisses her cheek and Nick's forehead. "Now go back to bed."

"Thanks," Stella smiles. A few minutes later, he joins them on the bed with the bottle. They watch as Nick hungrily drinks the warm liquid. Eventually he refuses to drink anymore and yawns sleepily. "I think he'll sleep for a couple more hours before waking us up again."

Mac takes the baby from her and carries him back to his crib, not knowing she is following. He pulls the blanket over him and gives him a good night kiss. Stella walks up next to him, placing her good hand on his shoulder. He wraps his arm around her waist, and together they watch their baby sleep.

"It's perfect," she whispers, leaning up to kiss him.

**A/N: It's over. I'll post my one chapter thing on Stella's wardrobe Monday maybe. Then you'll have to wait because I don't have anything else typed. It's very rainy here, yet still way too hot. Thursday was the seniors' last day at school so they were making a mess. For once I was glad my bus is one of the last ones to get there because they were throwing water balloons at people, specifically freshmen, as they entered. Then they did it again as we were going to the buses. I wouldn't have minded getting hit though since it was so hot. Then someone had paintballs and dropped then at the intersection between the biggest hallways in the school were many people pass through. And apparently they did something to the ketchup, but my friend didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Friday wasn't exciting except that who killed my science teacher thing was due. After reading my math teacher's side, I was sure it was her, but I was still planning to go to some other teachers. I asked the one lady during study hall then I meant to go around the next morning to find other teachers but didn't. Then I found out it was due, so I just wrote it was my math teacher with the gnome by the stage. Everyone kept asking me what I figured out and they had the same thing so it must be right. I guess I was lucky it just happened to be one of the two people I see during the day. Please give me final comments. This will be the second highest story I've written for amounts of reviews. **


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